Development and function of circuits that support visual and executive function
Brain development unfolds in a series of overlapping events that begin in utero and continue through adolescence. While genetic programming directs the assembly of circuits that support sensory and executive function, postnatal experience is instrumental for their functional maturation. In agreement, stressful early experiences can result in sensory processing and cognitive deficits later in life. This interplay of “nature and nurture” is well studied in late postnatal development of circuits that support sensory and social function. However, emerging evidence suggests that the brain is malleable by systemic and sensory experiences even in utero, and continues to be shaped by experience throughout life.
Drawing on our rich expertise in multiple fields (molecular biology, immunology, ecology, neurobiology, physics, etc.), some of the questions our laboratory is tackling are:
a. What are the earliest perinatal steps in the development of frontal brain areas?
b. How does perinatal trauma (such as preterm birth) interact with prenatal and neonatal infections in the context of brain development and the emergence of typical/atypical behaviors?
c. What are the circuit mechanisms of resilience to adult trauma, such as stress?
d. What are the circuit mechanisms of visual associative learning?
To address these (and many other!) questions, we use a variety of tools for in vivo probing of circuit function in mice: extracellular electrophysiology, EEGs, 2-photon imaging, behavioral tracking, confocal microscopy, immunohostochemistry and anatomy, chemogenetics, optogenetics, and many more.